Method of making building material



May 15, 1934. F, H. GlLcHRlsT NG MATERI L Original Filed OCT.. 2l, 19315 Sheets-Sheet l May 15, 1934- F. H. GILCHRIST 1,958,572

METHOD OF MAKING BUILDING MATERIAL Original Filed Oct. 21, 1931 5Sheecs-Shee':l 2

ATTORNEY May 15, 1934. F. H. GlLcHRlsT METHOD 0F MAKING BUILDINGMATERIAL 5 sheets-sheet 3 Original Filed 061'.. 21, 1931 "Iii/:AlvesATTORNEY May 15, 1934. F. H. GlLcHRlsT METHOD OF MAKINGBUILDING'MATERIAL 5 sheets,-shee+v 4 Original Filed Oct. 21, 1931INVENTOR d gan/ 057155@ BY ATTORNEY,

`May l5, 1934.` F. H. GlLcHRlsT 1,958,572

METHOD OF MAKING BUILDING MATERIAL Original Filed 0G11. 2l, 1931 5Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENToR ATTORNEY Patented May 15, 1934 UNITED STATESPATENT oFFlcE METHOD 0F MAKING BUILDING MATERIAL Original applicationOctober 21, 1931, Serial No.

570,115. Divided and this application October 5, 1932, Serial No.636,315

8 Claims.

This application is a division of my copending application Serial Number570,115, led October 21, 1931.

This invention relates to mastic building materials and to the method ofmaking such materials. The invention relates more particularly to panelsto be used for siding in simulation of stone, brick, clapboard, etc.

I have found that mastic material extruded in a layer upon a web ofbrous material, .surfaced with granular material of any suitable color,embossed with any desirable pattern and then cut into panels ofconvenient size, produces a finished product that is admirably adaptedto be used as siding in building construction. The mastic is a mixtureof bitumen, such as asphalt, with fibrous material and hardening llers,such as crushed slate, clay, sand, cork, etc., which hardens to a stiffmass upon cooling. An excellent source of material for the preparationof this mastic is the Waste material formed in the manufacture ofcomposition roofing. This waste contains asphalt, fibrous material andfillers and can bev masticated at elevated temperature to provide acomposition suitable for working into the products contemplated by myinvention.

The product ofemy invention has many advantages. It is of waterproofcharacter throughout its construction, and because of the nature of themastic it is comparatively rigid so that it can be easily handled inrelatively large units. The panels are so formed that they willinterlock at the joints to provide adequate protection against theweather. The panels are embossed in such a manner as to facilitate thelaying thereof and avoid difficulties in alignment. Furthermore, thesiding made according to my invention provides a Very economicalconstruction material.

Further objects and advantages will appear from the followingdescription of my invention and from the accompanying 'drawings ofwhich,

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view in elevationof one form of apparatus forcarrying out my invention;

Figure 2 is a view partly in cross-section of a i portion of theapparatus illustrated in Figure l taken along the line 2-2 of Figure 4;

Figure 3 is an enlarged view in. cross-section of the embossing andcutting rolls shown in Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a plan view of the apparatus illustrated in Figure 2;

Figure 5 illustrates a plan, one form of a finished panel made inaccordance with the invention;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary view in perspective,

showing the appearance of the back and hori- Zontal cross-section of acourse of panels made according to my invention;

Figure 7 is a similar view showing the back and vertical cross-sectionof several adjacent courses of panels;

Figure 8 is a vertical cross-section of the element shown in Figure 5along the line 5 5;

Figure 9 illustrates a modified form of panel made according to myinvention; x

Figure 10 is a horizontal cross-section of a course of panels of thetype illustrated inFigure 9;

Figure 11 is a view similar to Figure 7, of the panels, illustrated inFigure 9; O

Figure 12 is an enlarged vertical cross-section of the panels madeaccording to my invention;

Figure 13 illustrates the appearance of the panels when laid;

Figure 14 illustrates still another modification of a panel madeaccording to my invention; and

form of a sheet which may be of a cross-sectional thickness varying from1/8" to more or less. The sheet of masticis represented by the numeral2.l The numeral 3 indicates a roll of brous material which preferablycomprises asphalt saturated roong felt. The sheet of felt 4, is led overan idle roll 5, together'with the deposited layer of mastic 2. Thecombined sheet may then be passed over a table 6, where a coating ofweatherproof material, such as blown asphalt of 200 to 220 F. meltingpoint, may be applied vfrom a spout '1. The coating may, if desired, bedispensed with, but is preferably employed in order to enhance theweathering properties of the product and to assist in binding thesurfacing granules to the sheet. VFrom the table 6, the sheet passesunder a doctoring roll to spread the coating evenly over the surface ofthe layer of mastic. The sheet is then carried by a belt or other typeof conveyor 10, beneath the surfacing hopper 11, from which slate orother granular material is deposited upon the layer of coating. Thesheet may then be carried around a press'drum 12, to cause the'granulesto adhere firmly to the surface of the sheet, and then around idle rolls13. The drums 13 may be either heated or cooled by circulatingtherethrough a suitable fluid or in any other desired manner in order tobring the sheet to the proper temperature for the embossing ophereindescribed, during each revolution. Aclcordingly, the drum 16 is formedwith a series of narrow ribs 18 running lengthwise of the drum and aplurality of series of cross-ribs 19 around the periphery of the drum.The ribs 18 are spaced at suitable intervals around the periphery of thedrum, corresponding to the width of a common brick., Each rib 19 ispreferably of an arcuate length corresponding substantially lto thedistance between adjacent ribs 18. The ribs 19.

of one series are staggered in relation to the ribs of the adjacentseries, and the several series of ribs 19 are spaced from one anotheraxially of the drum, a distance substantially one half the length of acommon brick. The ribs 18 and 19 project outwardly of the peripheralsurface of the drum a distance approximating the distance between theface of a common brick and the surface of the mortar in ordinary brickconstruction. The Width of the ribs corresponds to that of an ordinarymortar joint. Cutters 21 are fixed at opposite ends of the drum 16,between alternate rows of ribs 18, the cutters at one end ofthe drumbeing peripherally staggered in relation to those at the opposite endthereof. The arrangement -of these cutters will depend upon theparticular modification of panel desired. As particularly illustrated inFigure 4, the cutters serve to remove the portions indicated by thenumerals 33 and 34, alongthe opposite longitudinal edges of the sheet,at `spaced intervals, whereby to form spaced tongues along each edge ofthe sheet. Numerals 22 and 23 represent circular slitters attached tothe periphery of the drum 16 at the outer extremities of the cutters 21.24 extending outwardly from the periphery of the drum for a distancegreater than that of the ribs 18 and 19. The boss 24 is of substantialarcuate length as compared with the width of the ribs 18and 19. The-drum17 has a boss 26 substantially similar to the boss 24 of the drum 16.The drums 16 and 17 rotate in relation to each other in the directionsindicated by the arrows in Figures 2 and 3, so that the edges 29 and 30of the bosses 26 and 24 respectively meet once during each revolution ofthe drums. I'he ribs 18, 19 are designed to compress the mastic layer toa fraction of its original thickness and simultaneously cause thesurfacing material to become completely embedded in the mastic, therebybringing to the surface the dark or contrasting color ofthe mastic.

As shown in Figure 4, the sheet, in its passage between the drums 16 and17 is embossed with a design resembling brick siding, each completerevolution of the drums producing a panel having a series of rows ofbricks embossed thereon. Successive panels are cut from the sheet bymeans of the confronting edges 29 and 30 of the bosses 24 and 26. Theboss 26 serves to under-emboss or crimp the leading end of the sheetafter each successive panel is cut therefrom, and theu boss 24 serves toemboss the upper surface of the panel at its rear end, as clearly shownin Figure 3. Thus, grooves 31 are formed in the mastic layer by means ofthe ribs 18 and the grooves 32 are formed by means or the ribs 19. Thecut-outs 33,

The drum 16 has a boss` 34 are made by means of the cutters 21. Theedges of the sheet are trimmed by means of the slitters 22 and 23. The"drums 16 and 17 are mounted on suitable shafts, 35, 36, and are drivenby means of any suitable source of power.` The panels issue from theembossing drums onto a table 37 from which they may be led away by aconveyor belt 38. It is evident that if other del signs are desired thepattern on the embossing rolls 16 and 17 can be changed. Moreover theembossing can be done with a stamping machine instead of rolls.

As shown in Figure 4, the backing sheet of felt is of less width thanthe layer of mastic. In this form, the inner edges 40 and 41 of thecut-outs 33 and 34, will be coincident with the longitudinal edges 39 ofthe felt backing sheet. lThe finished panel made as above describedwilly appear as shown in Figure 5. The upper horizontal margin 42comprises felt overlaid with mastic as shown more clearly at 43 ofFigure 8. The portions 44, 45, 46, 47, which extend beyond the lateraledges of the main portion of the panel comprise mastic without any feltbeneath, the lateral edges of the felt base being indicated by thedotted lines 48 and 49. The lower margin 50 of the panel which has beenunder-embossed or crimped up to the line 5l,

will also comprise felt overlaid with the mastic as shown in Figure 8.When these panels are laid.

in place on a wall, the felt backing will completely underlie the masticmaterial, as shown in Figure 6. In each horizontal course, the feltbacking of adjacent panels thus form a butt-joint, as indicated at 54,while the mastic material of each panel forms a lap-joint, as indicatedat 55 with its neighboring panel. The lapped portions of each panel willconsist of a layer of felty 56, and a thin layer of mastic 57. Thelapping portion of each panel at the joint will consist of acomparatively thick layer 58 of mastic only.. Between successive coursesthere will be a lap joint comprising two layers of felt and ,two layersof mastic as shown at 59, in Figure 7.' The lapped portions will consistof a layer offelt 60, and a thin layer of mastic 61, while the lappingportion will consist of a layer of felt 62 and a comparatively thicklayer of mastic 63. It will thus be seen that the marginal edges of thepanels are embossed to such relative depth that when the panels are laidin place, the brick simulating surfaces of the panels all lie insubstantially' the same plane.

LIn the modified -form of panel shown in Figure 9, the portions 64, 66and 67, which will be lapped when the panel is laid in place consist ofbare felt while the lapping portions 65 comprise mastic only. Theterminal edge yof the felt backing at the bottom of the panel is shownat 69. In producing this type of panel the mastic may be embossedseparately and then affixed to the felt backing. the felt joints 70 ineach horizontal course will In this embodiment of the invention beoffset with respect tothe mastic joints 71. The

same is true of the felt joints 72 and the mastic 'joints 73 betweenadjacent panels of successive ness than the simulated mortar joints. Thepanel 15( 'felt backing the mastic may be extruded and will beunderembossed or crimped up to the line 77 to provide the lappingportion to overlie the upper horizontal lapped areas '74 of subjacentpanels when laid.

All the forms of panels described and shown, will appear as shown inFigure 13 when laid in place upon a wall. The dotted lines 78 representthe joints between the felt backing sheets. The joints between themastic on the exposed face of the panels in each horizontal course willalways occur along staggered mortar joints. The exposed jointsbetween'adjacent courses will also occur at the mortar joints, therebyconcealing the joints. Looking at the back of the panels as they appearwhen laid, the felt joints will appear as continuous lines as shown at'79 and 80 in Figure 15, while the 'mastic joints will appear along thedotted lines 81, 82.

The cross section of the main body of a panel made according to any oneof the three modifications shown and described willappear as shown inFigure 12. The layer of felt 83 has a thick layer of mastic 84 unitedthereto. The granular material 85 is partially imbedded in the bricksimulating areas ofthe panel, and is completely embedded along thegrooves 86. Where coating material is applied to the surface of themastic it will appear as'a thin layer in which the granular material ispartially embedded on the brick-simulating surfaces and completelyimbedded in the grooves simulatingmortar joints. It is apparent that thesurfacing material may be applied only to the brick-simulating areas byembossing the mastic directly and -then cutting panels from the sheetafter which the granular material may be applied bycontacting it facedownward with 'a layer of granular material and exerting pressure tocause the granular material to adhere only to the fiat surfaces withwhich it comes into contact.

It will be understood that the-surfacing material brick-simulatingsurfaces'so that when granular material is applied it will adhere onlyto the coated surfaces, leaving the simulated mortar joints unsurfaced.v

Instead of using a backed sheet of felted brous material saturated 'byimmersion in a bath of molten asphalt, I may employ, in lieu thereof, asheet of composition board prepared from a mixture of brous material andan aqueous dispersion of bitumen and sheet on a conventional papermaking machine in accordance with known methods of making such sheets orboards. It is apparent that other materials, in board or sheet form, maybe used as the backing for the mastic layer.

1f it is desired to produce panels without the passed through'compression rollers alone and then subjected to slitting and embossingoperamodifications falling within the scope of the present inventionwill appear to those skilled in the art.

I claim as my invention:

1. The method of making siding elements comprising subjecting a sheet ofbituminous mastic material to embossing, whereby a design of desirableconfiguration is impressed upon the surface thereof, cutting the sheetinto elements of suitable size, crimping one face of the element at oneend and embossing the opposite face at the opposite end.

2. 'I'he method of producing siding panels simulating brick whichcomprises subjecting a sheet of bituminous mastic material to anembossing operation whereby to form a, design representing a gang ofbricks separated by mortar joints, cutting the lateral edges of thesheet along staggered 'lines conforming to the shape of the bricks andsevering the sheet into panels of suitable size.

3. 'I'he method of producing siding panels from a sheet of bituminousmastic material which comprises, embossing a brick simulating design ona face of the sheet, cutting the lateral edges of the sheet alongstaggered lines conforming to the shape of the bricks, cutting the sheetinto panels of suitable size, crimping one face of the panel at one endand embossing the opposite face at the opposite end.

4. The method of producing building elements comprising, uniting a thicklayer of bituminous mastic material to a base of felted fibrous materialto form a sheet, embossing a design of suitable conflguration on theface of said mastic, cutting .the sheet into elements of suitable size,crimping one face of the elements at one end and embossing the oppositeface at the opposite end.

5. The method according to claim 4in which a design simulating a' gangof bricks is embossed on the face of said mastic material.

6. The method according to claim 4 in which a design simulating a gangof bricks separated by mortar joints is embossed on the face of saidmastic material and the brick-simulating surfaces are covered withcoarse granular material.

7. The method of producing building elements comprising Auniting a thicklayer of bituminous mastic material to a base of felted fibrous materialto form a sheet, embossing the face of said mastic with a designsimulating a gang of bricks spaced with mortar joints, covering thebrick-simulating surfaces with coarse granular material, severing thesheet into elements each of which ,contains a plurality of rows ofbrick-v simulating surfaces, crimping one face of said elements at oneend and embossing the opposite face of said elements at the oppositeend.

8. The method according to claim I in which the lateral edges ofsaidsheet arecut along staggered lines conforming to the shape of thebricks.

FRANK H. GILCHRIST.

